The present invention relates to the field of lawn tools and is particularly concerned with a rake having grasping features and an adaptor for transforming a conventional rake into a rake having grasping features.
The use of rakes having fanned times for light raking such as raking together grass cuttings, tree leaves or the like is well known. Indeed, conventional rakes are commonly used to sweep leaves, grass cuttings and other materials into a pile. The pile is then picked up and placed within bags or other containers for disposal.
The task of picking up the piles and placing them within the disposal container has proven to be quite unergonomical and burdensome, particularly in view of the repeated bending and lifting movements. In picking up the raked piles the rake head is commonly used together with the hand of the user as a scoop against which portions of the pile to be disposed of or picked up for disposal is pressed. Not only is the operation unergonomical but also inefficient since only small amounts of trash can be held against the rake head in each pick up operation.
The need for an ergonomnical and efficient tool combining raking and grasping features has been recognized in the past. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,074 naming Lewis E. Allen as inventor and issued Jul. 18, 1989 discloses a rake like device provided for grasping and lifting a pile of material. The device includes a hollow handle having a rake head attached to its lower most extremity. The rake head is provided with a circular array of flexible metal times. A cable is disposed within the handle and extends a loop configuration to engagement with eyes associated with the times. When the cable is pulled upwardly, the times move radially in unison in an inwardly converging manner. When the pulling force is removed, the times return to their outwardly disposed positions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,448 naming Francisco Blanco as inventor and issued Jan. 29, 1980 discloses a rake having a fanned spring finger main raking head fixed at one end of the rake handle. The rake is further provided with an auxiliary complimentary fanned spring finger rake head pivotally supported with respect to the rake handle and movable into clamping jaw like relation with respect to the main raking head for picking up raked trash piles. The individual spring fingers of one rake head recedes between the spring fingers of the other rake head to provide for raking with either rake head when they are held in a relatively clamped together position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,018,038 naming Charles B. Sepe as inventor discloses a hand rake having grasping times. The rake includes a pair of multi timed fork members and a frame assembly for pivotally holding the fork members in a spaced facing relationship. A handle assembly secured to the frame assembly for carrying the fork member and a control mechanism is provided for cooperatively varying the pivotal dispositions of the fork members from an open material raking condition to a closed material transporting condition.
Although these prior art devices include both raking and grasping features, they suffer from major drawbacks including overall mechanical complexity leading to a high production cost and relatively low reliability. They also suffer from being both relatively unergonomical and inefficient. Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved rake having grasping features and for an adaptor allowing the conversion of a conventional rake into a rake having grasping features.
Advantages of the present invention include the fact that the proposed raking device has built-in integral grasping means allowing both raking of objects such as leaves, grass cuttings and the like into piles as well as grasping and picking up comparatively large piles of trash without bending and with minimal effort. The proposed device provides a relatively large capacity with minimal weight added to the conventional rake. The proposed device is specifically designed so as to be both ergonomnical and efficient.
Another main feature of the present invention resides in that the hereinabove mentioned advantages may be accomplished using a relatively simple mechanical structure thus reducing overall production cost and increasing overall reliability. Further advantages include the fact that the proposed device provides a double set of times that improves the overall ergonomic efficiency of every raking stroke.
Furthermore, the proposed device allows an intended user to pick-up raked components through an ergonomic set of steps and in a continuous motion with the raking stroke. This, in turn, reduces the risk of having the raked articles blown away or otherwise dispersed in certain environments, such as high winds or the like.
The proposed device is further specifically designed so as to be made of components that can easily be retro-fitted and affixed to existing rakes without requiring special tooling or manual dexterity.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a rake having grasping features comprising, in combination: an elongated and tubular rake handle, the rake handle defining a handle first longitudinal end and an opposed handle second longitudinal end; a main rake head attached to the rake handle adjacent the handle first longitudinal end by a main head base component, the main rake head including a set of main times extending from the main head base component, each of the main times defining a corresponding main tine proximal end and a main tine distal end; an auxiliary rake head pivotally attached to the main rake head by an auxiliary head hinge means, the auxiliary rake head including a set of auxiliary times extending from the auxiliary head hinge means, each of the auxiliary times defining a corresponding auxiliary tine proximal end and an opposed auxiliary tine distal end; the auxiliary head hinge means allowing the auxiliary rake head to pivot relative to the main rake head between an open configuration and a clamping configuration in a jaw-like manner, the auxiliary head hinge means being positioned intermediate the main tine proximal ends and the main tine distal ends and the auxiliary times being sized such that when the auxiliary head is in the clamping configuration the auxiliary tine distal ends are in a proximal relationship with the main tine distal ends; an actuating means for allowing an intended user to move the auxiliary rake head between the open and clamping configurations, the actuating means including an actuating sleeve slidably mounted on the rake handle and an actuating rod, the actuating sleeve defining a sleeve longitudinal axis, the actuating rod defining an actuating rod first longitudinal end, an actuating rod second longitudinal end and an actuating rod longitudinal axis, the actuating rod first longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the actuating sleeve and the actuating rod second longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the auxiliary head by an actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment means; a biasing means for biasing the auxiliary rake head towards the open configuration, the biasing means including a resiliently deformable biasing sleeve mounted on the rake handle, the biasing sleeve defining a biasing sleeve first longitudinal end and a biasing sleeve second longitudinal end, the biasing sleeve being sized such that when the auxiliary rake head is moved towards the clamping configuration the biasing sleeve first longitudinal end abuttingly contacts the actuating sleeve and the biasing sleeve second longitudinal end abuttingly contacts the main head base component; whereby slidable movement of the actuating sleeve towards the main head base component resiliently compresses the biasing sleeve, when in a compressed state the biasing sleeve having an inherent tendency to resiliently spring back towards its uncompressed state biases the actuating sleeve away from the main head base component and, through the mechanical link created by the actuating rod, biases the auxiliary rake head towards the open configuration. Preferably, the biasing sleeve includes an helicoidal-type spring, the helicoidal-type spring being coiled around the rake handle.
Conveniently, a main stabilizing structure extends transversally across the main times intermediate the main tine proximal and distal ends, the main stabilizing structure including a pair of main stabilizing plates, a stabilized segment of the main times being sandwiched between the main stabilizing plates; the auxiliary hinge means includes a first hinge plate and a second hinge plate positioned transversally relative to the main and auxiliary rake heads, the first and second hinge plates each having a corresponding set of spaced apart first and second hinge plate eyelets extending from one of their respective peripheral edges, the first and second hinge plate eyelets being positioned in side by side relationship relative to each other so as to define a common eyelet channel, an hinge rod extending through the eyelet channel to pivotally join together the first and second hinge plates; the first hinge plate being attached to one of the stabilizing plates and the second hinge plate being attached to the auxiliary times by an auxiliary tine attachment component.
Preferably, the auxiliary tine attachment component extends transversally across the auxiliary times adjacent the auxiliary tine proximal ends, the auxiliary tine attachment component including a pair of auxiliary attachment plates, an attached segment of the auxiliary times being sandwiched between the auxiliary attachment plates.
Conveniently, the actuating sleeve includes a rod-to-sleeve attachment section, the rod-to-sleeve attachment section including a sleeve spacing segment extending radially away from the actuating sleeve in a generally perpendicular relationship relative to the sleeve longitudinal axis, the rod first longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the sleeve spacing segment by a rod first hinge pin.
Preferably, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment means includes an actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component defining a rod spacing segment extending away from the auxiliary attachment plates and in a direction generally parallel to the auxiliary times, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component also defining an hinge hook segment extending integrally from the rod spacing segment, the rod second longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the hinge hook segment by a rod second hinge pin.
Conveniently, the actuating rod defines a rod angled segment adjacent the actuating rod first longitudinal end, the rod angled segment extending at an angle relative to the actuating rod longitudinal axis, the rod angled segment being configured and sized so as to create a spacing between the actuating rod and the rake handle when the auxiliary rake head is both in the open and clamping configurations.
In accordance with the present invention, there is also provided an adapter for retro-fittingly providing grasping features to a conventional rake, the conventional rake including an elongated and tubular rake handle, the rake handle defining a handle first longitudinal end and an opposed handle second longitudinal end; a main rake head attached to the rake handle adjacent the handle first longitudinal end by a main head base component, the main rake head including a set of main tines extending from the main head base component, each of the main tines defining a corresponding main tine proximal end and a main tine distal end; a main stabilizing structure extending transversally across the main tines intermediate the main tine proximal and distal ends, the main stabilizing structure including a pair of main stabilizing plates, a stabilized segment of the main tines being sandwiched between the main stabilizing plates; the adapter comprising: an auxiliary rake head pivotally attached to the main rake head by an auxiliary head hinge means, the auxiliary rake head including a set of auxiliary tines extending from the auxiliary head hinge means, each of the auxiliary tines defining a corresponding auxiliary tine proximal end and an opposed auxiliary tine distal end; the auxiliary head hinge means allowing the auxiliary rake head to pivot relative to the main rake head between an open configuration and a clamping configuration in a jaw-like manner, the auxiliary head hinge means being positioned intermediate the main tine proximal ends and the main tine distal ends and the auxiliary tines being sized such that when the auxiliary head is in the clamping configuration the auxiliary tine distal ends are in a proximal relationship with the main tine distal ends; an actuating means for allowing an intended user to move the auxiliary rake head between the open and clamping configurations, the actuating means including an actuating sleeve slidably mounted on the rake handle and an actuating rod, the actuating sleeve defining a sleeve longitudinal axis, the actuating rod defining an actuating rod first longitudinal end, an actuating rod second longitudinal end and an actuating rod longitudinal axis, the actuating rod first longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the actuating sleeve and the actuating rod second longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the auxiliary head by an actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment means; a biasing means for biasing the auxiliary rake head towards the open configuration, the biasing means including a resiliently deformable biasing sleeve mounted on the rake handle, the biasing sleeve defining a biasing sleeve first longitudinal end and a biasing sleeve second longitudinal end, the biasing sleeve being sized such that when the auxiliary rake head is moved towards the clamping configuration the biasing sleeve first longitudinal end abuttingly contacts the actuating sleeve and the biasing sleeve second longitudinal end abuttingly contacts the main head base component; whereby slidable movement of the actuating sleeve towards the main head base component resiliently compresses the biasing sleeve, when in a compressed state the biasing sleeve having an inherent tendency to resiliently spring back towards its uncompressed state biases the actuating sleeve away from the main head base component and, through the mechanical link created by the actuating rod, biases the auxiliary rake head towards the open configuration. Conveniently, the biasing sleeve includes an helicoidal-type spring, the helicoidal-type spring being coiled around the rake handle.
Preferably, the auxiliary hinge means includes a first hinge plate and a second hinge plate positioned transversally relative to the main and auxiliary rake heads, the first and second hinge plates each having a corresponding set of spaced apart first and second hinge plate eyelets extending from one of their respective peripheral edges, the first and second hinge plate eyelets being positioned in side by side relationship relative to each other so as to define a common eyelet channel, an hinge rod extending through the eyelet channel to pivotally join together the first and second hinge plates; the first hinge plate being attached to one of the stabilizing plates and the second hinge plate being attached to the auxiliary tines by an auxiliary tine attachment component.
Conveniently, the auxiliary tine attachment component extends transversally across the auxiliary tines adjacent the auxiliary tine proximal ends, the auxiliary tine attachment component including a pair of auxiliary attachment plates, an attached segment of the auxiliary tines being sandwiched between the auxiliary attachment plates.
Preferably, the actuating sleeve includes a rod-to-sleeve attachment section, the rod-to-sleeve attachment section including a sleeve spacing segment extending radially away from the actuating sleeve in a generally perpendicular relationship relative to the sleeve longitudinal axis, the rod first longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the sleeve spacing segment by a rod first hinge pin.
Conveniently, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment means includes an actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component defining a rod spacing segment extending away from the auxiliary attachment plates and in a direction generally parallel to the auxiliary tines, the actuating rod-to-auxiliary head attachment component also defining an hinge hook segment extending integrally from the rod spacing segment, the rod second longitudinal end being pivotally attached to the hinge hook segment by a rod second hinge pin.
Preferably, the actuating rod defines a rod angled segment adjacent the actuating rod first longitudinal end, the rod angled segment extending at an angle relative to the actuating rod longitudinal axis, the rod angled segment being configured and sized so as to create a spacing between the actuating rod and the rake handle when the auxiliary rake head is both in the open and clamping configurations.